(from My Voice, My Choice)
"TODDLERS ARE APPEARING BEFORE IMMIGRATION JUDGES. WITHOUT LAWYERS.
In the United States, migrant children as young as 2 are being brought before immigration courts that can determine whether they are deported. Many have no attorney.
A normal day in a Texas courtroom: 25 migrant children wait for a judge — a б-year-old plays airplane, a 3- year-old plays with the mic.
Among the first to appear before the judge was a 13-year-old Honduran boy named Angel. He didn't have an attorney.
JUDGE: "Is there a reason you can't return to Honduras?"
ANGEL, 13: "My mom and almost my entire family are here. It's too dangerous to go back."
JUDGE: "Would you like to request voluntary departure, or should lissue a removal order?"
ANGEL: "I don't know."
Angel bursts into tears.
ANGEL: "I have no one. I have nothing."
The 13-year-old was ordered removed from the United States and given until the end of the month to appeal.
That same day, 15 other children without attorneys were asked whether they wanted voluntary departure.
Some were so young they were playing with the courtroom microphone and stretching their hands into the air.
JUDGE: "Do you understand what these court proceedings are all about?"
A 3 year old: stays silent
JUDGE: "Do you have a lawyer?"
A 3 year old: "I don't know."
JUDGE: "Do you know what a lawyer is?"
A 3 year old: stays silent
The Trump administration ended federal funding for legal services that supported unaccompanied immigrant children.
Three years old. Migrant And expected to defend his right to safety in court.
RACISM IS AMERICA'S OLDEST TRADITION."
#racism #USA #UnitedStates #Texas #ICE #Trump #fascism #children #toddlers
seb."